Havin' a Party

One of my best friends turns 23 today, so I dedicate this to them:

It's a giant among clichés
And that's why I want to sing it anyway
Sing me "Happy Birthday"
Only 'cause hell, what's it all about anyway?
-Andrew Bird

You also get this picture of Christian Bale:

It Was One Year Ago Today

On February 12, 2007, I started Five Best. One year later, I can’t believe I’m still doing it. Technically, FB began before that as a column in The New School’s newspaper, Inprint, now the New School Free Press. But the blog actually began during, fittingly enough, Jazz History.

The class was from 9-11:40 a.m., and in the stuffy, mini-auditorium, sitting in one seat for nearly three hours became uncomfortable and occasionally boring. The class was interesting enough, but I needed something else to do. Luckily for me, I always brought my laptop along, and would normally just read articles.

On that fateful day, I’m not sure what lead me to starting Five Best, outside of my wanting to have a blog and already having a column that I loved to do. Plus, I love music (which is what the majority of my posts are about), so that helped.

So, with a post on John Wesley Harding, I began Five Best, and while I have since stopped doing it for the newspaper and instead took up Rock ‘N’ Roll Revisited, I’m happy to continue doing it on Blogspot, and hope to for quite some time more.

Here are some people and websites I’d like to thank:

LeosLyrics.com: Any time I need lyrics, I go to this website, for they have a great collection of songs with the (mostly) correct lyrics.

ExpectingRain: My favorite Bob Dylan website, and one that has also linked to my blog on multiple occasions.

Ken Kurp of Mr. Ken Kurp: For consistently (and lovingly) mocking my blog, and for making me laugh—when it actually gets updated, that is.

Nadia Chaudhury of Green, How I Want You Green: She's my girlfriend (and it's our six-month anniversary in a few days), so I kind of had to include her. Plus, she'll occasionally send me articles that are born to be blogged about, like one about Hitler's music taste.

Susan Kurp: If my mom hadn’t shown me The Last Waltz, I’m not sure if I’d be listening to the music I listen to today.

Patrick Kurp of Anecdotal Evidence: Without my father’s own blog, I would never have started mine, and many of the things I’ve written about came from conversations between the two of us.

Five Best...One-Season Television Shows

#5. They Honeymooners

#4. Undeclared

#3. Firefly

#2. Stella

#1. Freaks and Geeks

Five Best...Quotes from The Simpsons' "Home Sweet Homediddly-Dum-Doodily"

#5.
[Rod shows Todd a headline: "Playtime Is Fun"]
Todd: [gives thumbs-up] Go with it!
Bart: Here you go, Todd: the city edition. [headline: "Extra Extra! Todd Smells"]
Rod: Bart, I don't know if this should be an "extra."
Todd: Is your source on this reliable?

#4.
Marge: Where are we going? Where are we going?
Homer: Ok, ok, don't panic. To find Flanders, I just have to think like Flanders! [thinking] I'm a big four-eyed lame-o, and I wear the same stupid sweater every day and--[aloud]The Springfield River!


#3.
Goodman: Whoa, would you look at this place?
Agent 2: [speaking into a tape recorder] Sink full of dirty dishes, trash not taken out, living room a mess, stacks of old newspapers--from twenty years ago!
[Abe is sleeping in front of the TV]
Announcer on TV: Get ready, gamblers, for the World Series of Dog Racing!
Abe: What the--?
Goodman: Hmm. A disheveled and malnourished man found sleeping in his own filth, seems confused and dehydrated.
Agent 2: Where's the baby?
Abe: Well that's her, ain't it? [Maggie drinks from Santa's Little Helper's water bowl] Kids love that water.
Agent 2: Oh my Lord! [Maggie has a "I'm a stupid baby" sign on]
Goodman: Stupid babies need the most attention.

#2.
Goodman: Okay, let's see if we've learned anything. I want you two to simulate a typical household problem. Go.
Cletus: [on Homer's knee] Uh, Pa, I cut my finger on the screen door again.
Homer: Why you cotton-pickin'--[strangles Cletus] [to himself] No, I gotta pass this class for my kids. [to Cletus] Son, let's stop the fussin' and the feudin'.
Cletus: I love you, Pa! [weeps]
Homer: I love you, Cletus! [weeps]

#1.
Homer: Kids! We're good parents now. Get your asses out here!
Marge: We've missed you so much. [they gasp at the "Gone Baptizin'" sign on Flanders' door] He's going to baptize our children?!?
Homer: Oh, no! In the eyes of God, they'll be Flanderseseses.

Happy birthday, Mom.

Happy Birthday...To Me!

As today is my 20th birthday, I'm going to be selfish, think about myself and post birthday related videos:

-An SNL clip of a "new" Happy Birthday song with Jack Black

-A bunch of Simpsons birthday clips: Homer not blowing out his candles, The Ramones (Stones?) singing to Mr. Burns and a performance of "Lisa, It's Your Birthday" by Bart and Leon Kompowski.

-Bob Dylan singing "Happy Birthday" and sounding/looking horrible.

-And, of course, "Birthday" by The Beatles

Birthday Bobby

I'd like to wish Bob Dylan a happy 66th birthday!